Supreme Court’s case law on the Scottish independence referendum: substance and consequences.
Résumé
Whereas the 2014 referendum on Scottish independence would have resulted in a long- term decision to remain within the United Kingdom, Brexit reshuffled the deck. The Scottish National Party seized on the Scottish people’s strong opposition to leaving the European Union to demand a new vote from London by the end of the 2010s. The Conservatives, firmly opposed to independence, consistently refused to initiate a process similar to 2014. Amid tense relations between the two governments during Brexit negotiations, the nationalists unilaterally launched a legislative initiative to consult the Scottish people once again. However, this was thwarted by the intervention of the UK Supreme Court, which ruled in 2022 that a bill providing for an advisory referendum was outside the competence of the devolved authorities. Since then, the SNP has entered a period of crisis, one that coincides with the return of a Labour government far more supportive of devolution.
